Help with my approach to a career in nursing

[mgenerous]

Hi,

I've been working as a hospital clerk for about 3 years now and I have decided to pursue a career in nursing - ER nurse in particular. I've grown to appreciate what nurses do and realize that there is more to nursing than just "wiping butts." I've especially grown interest in triaging, and would like to become one in the future - to be an excellent triage nurse. I'm well aware that nursing school is very challenging and, knowing my learning habits, I need to be doing something in repetition in order to excel in whatever it is that I am doing. So i've decided to start off by applying for a spot in a Practical Nursing Program. After finishing an LPN diploma I will gain a bit of experience before applying for the LPN-RN bridging program. I do plan to work as an LPN and and RN at the same time.

I've done my research and my options are (stenberg college, CDI, Sprott shaw, Vancouver community college, or the Norquest distance LPN program.) I'm well aware of the bad reputation that private colleges have (CDI, Stenberg, Sprott Shaw) because of their high tuition costs and lack of proper training, but my question is - if I were to attend one of these private colleges, how badly would the quality of training affect my performance once i'm in the field? Is it really the school's fault for developing poorly trained students or is it the student? From experience, i've always had the tendency to ask unique and important questions during hands on practice or preceptor ships and I've had experience with average performance in class but do really well in practicums. If I do well in my preceptorship then would it really make a significant impact on my chances of landing a job?

I guess my main question is, how will the school that I attend affect me? Some people are telling me that if I had to choose between CDI or sprott shaw, to go to sprott shaw... but what difference does it make? Theyre both private colleges and they both have bad reputation when it comes to training their students. I'm honestly leaning more towards CDI college just because its 5 minutes away from my home and tuition is about the same as SS and Stenberg. Unfortunately VCC has too long of a waitlist for both their RN program and LPN program, which is why I'm leaning more towards the private colleges.

If anyone has any input it would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you very much,

[joanna73, BSN, RN]

AHS is the main employer of nurses in my province. So unless they go the private clinic route or the Catholic system, it would be discovered pretty quickly.

factor in the $10+ an hour difference and you wouldn't see many new RNs working their old LPN lines

Agreed. It seems different in ON, but at Covenant Health I have not encountered or heard about nurses working in both roles. It's one or the other.

[Fiona59]

OP: LPNs don't work under a nurse. They are nurses who carry their own insurance and are responsible for their actions and decisions and report back to the Charge Nurse.

An 86% pass rate is nothing to brag about. My class had 72 write the exam and all passed.

CDI has a dismal record and are not permitted to educate PNs in my province.

Yes, where you went to school can affect a hiring decision. If there have been graduates of a programme hired with poor skills and requiring lengthy orientation periods, managers are less likely to take chance on you.

I graduated from one of the best PN programmes in the country with basic skills that exceeded what BC taught but found it hard to get hired there because I wasn't a local grad. Great references but not local.

[madricka, BSN, RN]

It's not just about passing the NCLEX. Anyone can memorize information, take practice exams, etc. There is a HUGE difference in book smarts vs real life nursing -- you will gain SO MUCH from quality instructors and clinical placements. Learning to think critically, interact well with patients and families, problem solve in a variety of situations -- these are things you won't necessarily get from a money-focused school that is only interested in churning out grads. You don't want to just be a nurse, you want to be a GOOD nurse.

Ultimately you should go with your gut feeling. I absolutely understand your eagerness to get started -- we've all been there! But time will go by so fast. Take time to make a good decision, you don't want to look back and have regrets. And look into the wait list for RN, it might not be as long as you think!